1952 Topps Mickey Mantle Card Doubles In Value To $525,800 In Just One Year

David Seideman
, ContributorOpinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own.

"If we had a dime for every "Baby Boomer" we've met who's claimed to have owned a Topps Mantle rookie as a child, we'd be able to afford this one with plenty of dough to spare," said Heritage's catalog description. (Photo by Heritage Auctions).

Steve’s jaw nearly dropped. He then reeled off key stats for context. The S&P 500 is 0.16% year to date. The Dow Jones -1.39% YTD. NASDQ, which has more risk is only up 6.53% YTD. Government bonds are paying 2-3 %. “And commodities have gotten killed this year,” he said.

The back of the Mantle card that broke the latest record is a "stunning example," added the catalog. (Photo by Heritage)

Steve wondered aloud how many investors could possibly pay such astronomical sums for the Mantle. Based on my dozens of interviews and attendance at shows from Boston to Chicago, my educated guess is that there are enough super rich shifting their money from stocks and bonds to vintage, high-grade specimens to keep propelling prices. Demand outweighs the supply, which is 32 graded in PSA 8.

And these well-heeled speculators are better positioned to take risks than the average person with far less discretionary income. A very well connected employee of a top sports auction house recently told me that anything involving prices is like an EKG, whether it be baseball cards or barrels of oil.